Garment-supporting shoulder strap



April 22 1924;. 1,491,578

F A BALLOU ET AL GARMENT SUPPORTING SHOULDER STRAP Filed July 2e, 1925 .Fc-aer-z'c- 1 aaa Jr:

Patented Apr. 22, 1924.

FREDERICK A. BALLOU, OF NAYATT, AND EUGENE MOREHOUSE AND FREDERICK A. BALLOU, J' R., 0F PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNORS T0 B. A. BALLOU & CO., INC., F PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, A CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND.

GABMENT-SUPPORTING SHOULDER STRAIP.

Application led `Tuly 26, 1923. Serial No. 653,901.

To all lwhom t my concern:

Be it known that we, FREDERICK A. BAL- LoU, of Nayatt, county of Bristol, and EU- GENE MoREHoUsE and FREDERICK A. BALLOU,

Jr., both of Providence, county of Providence, and State of Rhode Island, citizens of thepUnited States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Garment- Supporting Shoulder Straps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a garment supporting shoulder strap; and has for its object to provide a stra of this character which may be made o chain, a string of pearls, ribbon or other material, thesame being provided at its opposite ends with means whereby it may be readily attached to the fabric of the garment to be supported.

A further object of this invention is to provide an elongated bar having means such as a pin or clasp, which may be readily connected to the fabric of the garment to be supported, the ends of the strap being bri` dled or connected near the opposite ends of this fabric-engaging bar to prevent the bar from tipping out of its normal working position.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of means in the strap whereby its operating length may vbe adjusted to t different people and to accommodate garments of different heights.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, as will be more fully described, and particularly pointed out in the ap ended claims.

n the accompanying drawlng,

Fignrel is a fragmental view of a human person showing our improved shoulder strap m position to support the upper edge of a garment.

Figure 2 is a perspectlve vlew lllustrating the construction of our improved shoulder strap. v

Figure 3 is an enlarged front elevatlon illustrating a series of loo s which maybe attached to one part o the strap and through which another part is woven to securely retain the strap when adjusted to different operating lengths.

Figure-4:` is a sectional edge v1ew of the loops shown in Figure 3, with one part of the chain woven through the same.

en wearing low-necked evening dresses,

it is found by ladies, of advantage to provide a shoulder strap for retaining the edge of the garment at the proper height, both in front and in back adjacent the bust-line, and it is also found that this fine chain not only performs these functions but at the same time, when made of very small or fine links of gold, silver or platinum, provides a strap which is effective in its operation in that the thin, light garment it is designed to support causes the fine, delicate chain to slightly indent itself into and cling to the fiesh, which efectually prevents it from slipping `from the shoulder of the wearer. This devicexas constructed is quite inconspicuous but that portion showing produces a some-y what delicate and yet ornamental effect.

It is also found of advantage to be able to adjust the operating length of the strap to support dresses of dierent heights, and to also fit people of different sizes; also, it is` found of advantage, to provide a fastening device such as an artistically formed bar pin, clamp or clasp to which the bridled separated or spaced apart ends of the strap may be connected without the use of solder, if desired; and rthe following -is a detailed sov description of one construction of such devvice by which these results may be accomplishedz- With reference to' the drawings, 10 designates the body of a strap which may be made of any suitable'material such as chains of different metals and of different colors, such as silver, gold or platinum, or this strap may be constructed of small pearls, beads, ribbon, or lother suitable materials.

This strap is also provided with simple and e'ective means for engaging the fabric of the garment to which the ends of this chain or strap may be connected, which con-v nectin'g means may be in the form of a spemenare cially constructed safety pin 11 having a bar 12 provided with spaced a art loops 13, which eyes may be formed Eby bending or shaping the stock of the bar as shown in Figures 2 and 7, or these eyes may be attached to the bar of the pin, if desired, or this bar may be made in any suitable or ornamental form having means by which the strap may be connected thereto.

At the ends of the body of the chain, we have provided a ring 14 to which the ends of the bridle chain 15 may be connected, their opposite ends being attached to the eyes- 13 of the pin bar.

The opposite end of the body ortion of this chain or strap is preferabl rst looped through a ring 21 around the ar 22 of the binding member 23 back through this ring thence down through ring 16 of the bridle 17, thence the extremity 24 is led back and connected to eye 25 on ring 21, whereby when loose as shown, free ad'ustment is obtained and when under tension the bar 22 of member 23 is drawn tightly down into the ring 21 which thus serves as a buckle for securely binding the chain in adjusted position against sllpping. In other instances, the chain may e irst looped through the ring 16 back upon itself and have its extremity connectedto the eye or ring 18 in the friction grippin member 19. This friction gripping mem r may be constructed of a plurality of loops, through which the part 20 of the chain is passed, as illustrated 1n Figure 4, whereby the friction of this chain in being woven in and out through these friction eyes serves to hold the cham in required position when adj'usted to obtain different operating lengths.

It will be noted y our improved construction of friction links that it is quite incons icuous when mounted on the body of the c am.

Our particular construction of friction links renders the adjustable element of the chain very inconspicuous, also by our improved construction of bar pin where'the eyes are formed in the bar, the chain may be connected to the bar without the use of solder thus permitting each part to be finished and subsequently assembled or connected up by hand.

Our improved garment supporting shoulder strap is very handsome and attractive in appearance and when made of very tine chain, is very inconspicuous and yet fully performs the function of retaining the upper ed e of the garment in its proper position agout the bust-line.

rlhe foregoin description is directed solely towards t e construction illustrated, but we desire it to be understood that we reserve the privilege of resorting to all the mechanical changes to which the device is susceptible, the invention being defined and formed of a short limited only by the terms of the appended claims.

We cl:

1. A garment supporter comprising a chain portion adapted to extend over the shoulder of the wearer substantially to the bust line and having attaching members at its ends adapted to be connected 'to a garment to support the same about the bust-line, and adjusting means on the chain portion lwheeby its operating length may be reguate 2. A garment sup orting shoulder strap having an elongated) horizontally-disposed bar-pin arranged to engage the fabric of the garment to be suspended about the bust of the wearer and said strap having portions attached to said bar-pin near its opposite ends to prevent the pin from tipping out of its normal working position.

3. A garment supporting shoulder strap havin an elongated horizontally-disposed bar pin adapted to engage the fabric of the garment to be suspended, and said strap eing bridled at its ends and attached to said bar near its opposite ends, and means for adjusting the operating length of said strap.

4. A garment sup orting shoulder strap formed of a short ength of chain, a bar pin to engage the fabric of the garment havlng spaced apart eyes located near its opposite ends and the chain being bridled at its ends and connected to said eyes in said bar pin.

5. A garment suplporting shoulder strap ength of chain, a bar pin to engage the garment having spaced a art eyes located near its opposite ends, t e cham being bridled at its ends and connected to said eyes in said bar pin, a ring to which one end of the chain is connected, and a friction member around which the art of the chain is looped to be drawn into inding enV gement with said ring whereby the working length of the cham may be adjusted.

6. A garment supporting shoulder strap formed of a short length of chain, an attachin member forq releasably connecting the en s of the strap to the garment, an eye connected to said attaching member, one end of the chain being looped through said eye and folded back upon itself, a ring to which said end is connected, a friction member having a cross. bar, one rt of the chain being looped through said ring and over the cross bar in lsaid member whereby when said bar is drawn into said ring the folded parts of the chain will remain in adjusted position.

7. A garment sup orter comprising a chain portion adapte to extend over the shoulder of the wearer substantially to the bust-line and provided with .attaching memmenare bers at its ends .for connecting said chain ends to the back and front portions of the garment, and a portion of the chain being folded back upon itself and provided with means whereby its operating length may be adjusted.

8. A garment comprising a pair of elongated attaching members adapted to releasably yengage a garment to be supported, and a iexible strap adapted to extend over the shoulder to the bust-line of the wearer and having portions attached against slipping to said members on opposite sides of their transverse center line, whereby tipping of said attaching members from their normal position is prevented.

9. A garment supporter comprising a strap adapted to extend over the shoulder of the wearer substantially to the bust-line and provided with an attaching bar-pin at its opposite ends for connecting the strap ends to the back and front portions of the FREDERICK A. BALLOU. EUGENE MOREHOUSE. FREDERICK A. BALLOU, JR. 

